Mohan Bhagwat's Remarks On Manipur Unrest Lacks Entire Picture On Ground
In his Vijaydashami speech at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh headquarters last Tuesday, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat pointed fingers towards "external forces", without naming any country, holding 'them' responsible for the unrest in Manipur. As per media reports, he also gave a clean chit to the government. He alleged that this violence is orchestrated. Chief Minister N Biren Singh also directly blamed "foreign hands" for the violence in his state.
Firstly, it is a fact that any disturbance in the northeastern region benefits China, a hostile neighbour that directly supports India’s sworn enemy Pakistan. So, the possibility of China's direct involvement in the unrest in the northeastern state can’t be ruled out. After all, China would never want India, its direct competitor in the South Asia region, to prosper. It’s an open secret that many insurgent groups operating in the northeast region have received support from China. According to a Bloomberg report three years ago, Indian officials held China responsible for providing support to insurgent groups in the region through Myanmar-based organisations, which act as proxy groups of China by supplying weapons and providing hideouts.
Having said that, it is also true that the state BJP government led by Chief Minister Biren Singh initially failed to anticipate the violence when signs of dissent emerged and later failed to control it when the violence broke out. This has been said several times by many. Not only this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, even after almost six months, has yet to visit the strife-torn state. He has yet to meet with the chief minister and elected representatives of the state, most of whom belong to his own party and allies.
Although over the last fortnight, the violence has reduced considerably in the northeastern state — undoubtedly a welcoming trend — it can’t be denied that there is a wide gap that continues to exist between Meiteis and Kuki-Zomis. Unless this is properly addressed, complete peace is unlikely to return. But the fact is that there have been no successful attempts from either the Centre or the state government to address this issue. The Centre had, however, tried to address this by forming a 51-member committee after Home Minister Amit Shah’s crucial visit to the state four months ago. Unfortunately, this initiative failed to take off. So, why point fingers only towards external forces when the state government and the Centre have failed to bridge the widening gap between Meities and Kuki-Zomis?
BJP Manipur President Denies Reality: Does It Cover the Truth?
This week, while speaking to the reporters, the state BJP president A Sharda denied the truth that the party’s Kuki-Zomi legislators are demanding a separate administration. Instead, she chose to blame the policies of the previous Congress rule as the root cause behind this demand for a separate administration.
Agree that the state BJP president isn’t wrong when she blames the previous governments of the state behind the demand for a separate administration. But at the same time, she can’t run away from the bitter truth that the BJP government, which has been in power for the last 6 years, is also responsible for failing to address the old issues of the people of the state — and this is also a contributor to the present demand of a separate administration by the Kuki-Zomis.
If peace has to be restored in the northeastern state, the bitter realities have to be confronted. By denying the bitter truth that her party legislators from the Kuki-Zomi group are demanding a separate administration, she as the party president of the ruling party is trying to deflect from the ground reality — and this is really shocking and very unfortunate.
Mizoram CM Zoramthanga Plays Mizo, Christian Cards
This week, the statement of poll-bound Mizoram's Chief Minister Zoramthanga, who is also the president of the ruling Mizo National Front, made headlines in the state and national media when he said that he wouldn’t share the stage with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister is likely to visit the state on October 30 to address an election rally in the Mamit district.
As the MNF is currently part of the BJP-led North East Democratic Alliance in the region while being part of the saffron party-led National Democratic Alliance at the Centre, this statement from the MNF president assumes significance. However, as of now, there are no indications of MNF leaving the NDA or the NEDA. If this is so then why did he say this?
MNF has been facing anti-incumbency as unemployment remains one of the most important issues among the voters. Also, the roads and the infrastructure of the state are not in good condition. It is banking on its Social Economic Development Policy, a family-focused flagship policy that provides financial assistance to families. Still, the ruling party isn’t completely sure about its victory in the state and remains worried as it faces the challenge from the Zoram People’s Movement, which has been a strong Opposition.
As a result, the ruling party is leaving no stone unturned to play the Christian and Mizo cards among the voters, most of whom are ethnically Mizos and practising Christians. That’s why he has been reiterating that under the BJP-led government in Manipur, churches were burnt, and as a result, he is avoiding sharing the stage with Modi — a clear message to the majority of Christians that he respects their religious sentiments. For that, he is ready to even maintain a distance from the Prime Minister.
However, while trying to cater to the emotions of the majority of Christians by exploiting the situation of Manipur, Zoramthanga forgets that not only churches but temples of the Meiteis were also burnt in the state. And importantly, Kuki-Zomis of Manipur are ethnically related to Mizos and by repeatedly highlighting the unfortunate situation of neighbouring Manipur, the MNF president is trying to cater to the Christian Mizos through ethnic emotions too. This clearly shows the desperation of the ruling party ahead of the elections, which are going to be held on November 7.
After Signs Of Cracks, INDIA Bloc In Assam Tries To Address Conflicts
The leaders from the United Opposition Forum of Assam, an extended version of the national Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, met this week to improve their coordination and strengthen the alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha polls to challenge the ruling BJP-led NDA, which has been in a strong position in the northeastern state. The 13 parties, including Congress, CPI(M), Raijor Dal, Assam Jatiya Parishad, and TMC, agreed to frame a common minimum programme by November. Two more parties — Shiv Sena (UBT) and All Party Hill Leaders Conference of Karbi Anglong — have also agreed to join the bloc, taking the number to 15.
This meeting comes days after the statement of state Congress president Bhupen Borah saying that Congress would contest all the 14 seats of the northeastern state in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Although later he retracted his statement and clarified that he meant all the parties of the INDIA bloc, the signs of cracks within the Opposition bloc became evident. Interestingly, the TMC state president Ripun Bora is given the responsibility of preparing the draft
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